Short hops and hard knocks with Red Sox beat writer Ian Browne.

The re-opener

Opening Day, Part Deux, tonight at the McFee Coliseum in Oakland. In case you care, I saw one of the great baseball games of my life from this press box. Game 3 of Yankees-A’s Division Series 2001. Jeter made the behind the back throw to the plate to cut down Jeremy Giambi, who never slid. Mike Mussina pitched a gem. Posada went deep in a 1-0 game in what was a series turning win for the Yankees. Zito pitched incredibly well for the A’s that day but one mistake haunted him.

Another great game in this stadium: Game 5 of the 2003 Division Series where it was the Red Sox turning the table on the A’s. There was the Johnny Damon-Damian Jackson crash, but also a drama-filled save by Derek Lowe, who reverted back to his old role for a night and threw perhaps the nastiest sinker of his entire career right by Terrence Long.

Anyway, I’ll stop digressing. Josh Beckett did great in his last Minor League outing. As manager Terry Francona said today, “Beckett will more likely than not, start Sunday in Toronto.” That means he will face Roy Halladay in a marquee matchup.

One other news item: Ellsbury will lead off tonight. The main reason is that with Drew not playing, they can hit Youkilis sixth so they’ll have a little more thump in the middle of the lineup.

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Of course the same place where Clemens went bezerk back in 1990. Who can ever forget that day. Terry Cooney behind the plate, where is he now ?

My ideal lineup is Ellsbury leading off with Youkilis in the 2 hole. I like Youkilis in the 2 hole because he takes so many pitches and that gives Ellsbury more of a chance to steal second. Ellsbury at second with nobody out is nothing but a great thing. It would change the entire inning. I am expecting bigger things from this lineup this year than last year. Ramirez and Oritz should combine for 80 homers again. The best duo in baseball and it belongs in Boston. You gotta love it!!!!

Let’s hope Dice-K can throw strikes tonight. Safe to say in Japan he was very nervous when he took the mound. When he settled down he looked like the Dice-K we are all expecting. One more thing, stop nibbling the corners, be more aggressive.

Imagine being a bay area baseball fan. The Giants and the A’s should combine for 180 losses, talking about a long season for bay area baseball fans. Both teams should finish in last place, ouch!!!! Both teams have a lineup full of outs. At least the A’s have Chavez and Crosby. The Giants lineup is punchless, alot of automatic outs. The Giants might not have a guy hit more than 20 homers. Talking about pathetic!!!

Well, Finally I feel like the REAL BASEBALL is about to begin. This, to me, feels like the season opener. I will TRULY feel the season has started when we open at home, in the grand old lady that we all know as Fenway. But on the road as we are, I need to do my duty here as head cheerleader (this is my 3rd year!!):
Okay, The bat warmers have been rested for the winter (but for a brief respite), so the bats should be as hot as the hinges of the doors of lleh. The gloves are nicely oiled and seasoned to grab the ones trying to go up the slot and by the corners of the bags, and the guys, well I don’t need to say that they are MORE thank ready to, dare I say it??
PLAY BALL!
Appx one hour til 1st pitch and I ( and I know I’m not alone) will be right there 1st pitch til last. Excited??? No, not me….
NOT MUCH.
LET’S GO REDSOX, LET’S GO!!!!

Let’s hope Crisp can get his bat going. The sooner he does, the quicker he’ll be gone. I would rather have Kielty as the 4th o.f. Crisp is a great center fielder but nothing more than a .280 hitter, who strikes out too much. Not enough contact for my liking. What a great stop by the A’s third basemen, he saved a run. He’s filling in for Chavez, makes a Chavez kind of play.

The umpires missed that call. Varitek hit a homer and the replay shows it, no doubt about it. Umps took away a run from the Red Sox. They should be leading 3-1. Youkilis with 3 hits tonight, off to a nice start.

Although Dice-K never looked in danger of losing his control badly, that Varitek homer that was called as a double could really have come back to bite the sox. It brings back the debate of should there be the option for a manager to challenge the call of an umpire, much like they do in the NFL and now in Tennis with the Hawkeye challenge system. I live in Australia and I know that in Australian Rules Football and also in soccer there is no rule to challenge an umpiring decision. And look what’s happening at the moment in both those sports – the sports governing body is having to introduce measures to cut down on umpire abuse over bad calls. I think the MLB probably need to consider this and nip it in the bud before it gets to the stages that it has in other sports – by seriously considering the option of challenging decisions (perhaps 2 challenges a game, if you challenge correctly you don’t lose the challenge). Nevertheless, it was good to see Dice-K at his near best tonight and I hope this is a sign of things to come for him this year. Go sox!

Its nice to see the Sox winning 2 one-run ballgames (although last night should have been a 2-run ballgame, had Tek’s homer been properly called) to start off the season. Pap with 2 saves already, and Oki Doki with 2 appearances already. Hopefully, over the long season the Sox scoring machine can “amp up” so they can have a few “going away” wins and provide rest to these guys who will obviously be an essential part of any title run the Sox make.

I guess the one thing I don’t quite understand is starting Beckett on Sunday. Why not hold him out until Tuesday’s home opener? Since his back prevented him from startnig the season opener, why not, in deference to the year he put up last year helping the Sox win the rings they will likely get that day, start him for the home opener? I see where the Sox have the Yanks coming in at the end of the week, but with 4 days rest, Beckett could still pitch the Sunday night game against the Yanks. I have been, and remain, a big supporter of Tito, but I find this decision a bit surprising. I recognize that to hold Beckett off until the home opener would probably require impressing Kyle Snyder or Julian Tavares into service as the starter for the last Toronto game (although Dice-K would have had four days rest since his start yesterday). Or maybe, they could bring up Justin Masterson for a “one game appearance” like they did with Buchholz several times last year.

Anyway, I’m casting my vote for holding Beckett out until Tuesday’s home opener at Fenway. Let’s see if anyone else feels the way I do.

Granted I am a SOX fan, but it sure seems like somebodie(s) are coddling the poor Yanks two years running now, and giving them a noticeably favorable schedule compared with that of the SOX.

Last year we were able to over come this bias (thanks to early injuries and an uncharacteristically poor start for the Yanks as a result) — but just barely in the end (two games in the end as we know).

This year the disparity is even more noticeable in April. I can’t imagine a tougher April for the SOX on paper, and the Yanks have it relatively normal, certainly much easier than the SOX. And I so no recompense throughout the schedule evening it out.

Seems to me some is trying to stack the deck for October. Certainly MLB likes the Yanks in the playoffs.

I don’t normally think this way, but the schedule two years running now is just too conspicuous for me not to comment?

Anyone know the skinny on these politics? committee? who crafts the schedules and when?

Given my query above about the Yanks schedule vs the SOX schedule, I have no problem with Francona’s decision to start Beckett in Toronto, plus Beckett has had an abbreviated warmup this season, so he is probably trying to work him a bit on the job, so to speak.

But more importantly, we need every win we can get in April. Our April schedule is a beast, Yanks is much easier (on paper). We should probably put our strongest play out each and every game, and not put a risk even a single game, trying to setup for Home Opener sentiments. We may need that single game in the end. Whatever is the best configuration/lineup to win the most games in April, is probably the best strategy, as with any month of course.

Hey, CHman. how the heck have you been?? Long time no read!! Glad to see the “gang” is all waking up from our long winters nap!!
I truly enjoyed the game last night (barring Tek’s “double”/shoulda been an hr except for a very vision impaired crew of umpires. I’ll only be able to see not hear todays game, my boss is nice enough to allow me to have it on at my desk, but that beats the lleh out of not seeing it at all.
Let’s go
RedSox, Let’s go.

I think Francona should have a relativelly easy decision. If someone has to go it should be Lopez, who hasn’t done anything for the Sox for the last several years. Even if they weren’t forced to let someone go, they would be better off without him.

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